PLOT

A few months after the events of the previous film, it is the day of Bella Swan and Edward Cullen’s wedding and Bella is preparing with the help of Edward’s sisters Alice and Rosalie and Renee, her mother.

During the reception, Jacob Black, who had quickly left town upon receiving an invitation to the wedding, returns.

Bella and Edward happily exchange their vows together and are married in front of their loved ones. Bella is pleasantly surprised to see Jacob returned and the two share a dance in the woods. Bella admits that she and Edward plan to consummate their marriage on their honeymoon while she is still human. Jacob becomes furious, knowing that such an act could kill her. Sam and other pack members restrain Jacob before he phases.

After the wedding, the couple spends their honeymoon on Isle Esme, and they make love for the first time. The next morning, Edward realizes that Bella has numerous bruises and is upset at himself for hurting her, though Bella insists that she enjoyed the experience. Edward vows not to make love again until she becomes a vampire.

Two weeks after the wedding, Bella vomits after waking and notices her period is late. Alice calls Bella and asks if she’s alright, as Alice had a vision of something happening to Bella. She passes the phone to Carlisle, Edward’s adoptive father, and Bella tells him she believes she is pregnant. Edward is distraught as he knows it is highly unlikely a human will survive giving birth to a vampire’s baby. He tells her that Carlisle should remove the baby. She refuses, as she wants to keep her child, and convinces Edward's sister, Rosalie, to act as her bodyguard. They fly back home to Forks, Washington. Though Bella has only been pregnant for two weeks, the baby rapidly grows.

Jacob rushes over to the Cullens' house. Bella, now heavily pregnant, is pale and underweight. Jacob, upset by Bella's failing health, says that Carlisle should terminate the pregnancy as soon as possible so that Bella may survive. Bella ignores Carlisle's medical advice and Alice's visions, continuing her pregnancy. As her pregnancy progresses, the quality of her health declines rapidly but, after a snide comment from Jacob, Bella realizes the baby is craving blood and begins drinking human blood sourced by Carlisle from the local hospital and her health improves. The pregnancy progresses at an alarming rate and, as a half-vampire, the fetus is far more accelerated than a human one. Edward’s dislike for the baby dissolves as he notices he can read his/her thoughts and he and Bella share a tender moment with their unborn child.

Bella is sharing her baby names with Edward and Jacob when her backbone suddenly breaks and she collapses. They realize that Bella cannot cope with the pregnancy and the baby is suffocating, so Edward, Jacob, and Rosalie begin to perform a cesarean section on her. Rosalie begins the procedure, as Carlisle is out getting blood, but due to her hunger, the blood on the blade tempts her greatly. Jacob stops her as Edward picks up the blade and finishes the procedure. As the morphine hasn’t had time to spread yet, the procedure is excruciatingly painful for Bella as Edward cuts her stomach open and she falls unconscious.

After the procedure, Bella wakes up and sees her healthy newborn daughter, and chooses Renesmee (a combination of her and Edward’s mothers’ names) as the baby's name, before her heart seemingly stops beating. Jacob desperately attempts CPR while a now calm Rosalie takes the baby away. Edward injects Bella's heart with his venom to transform her into a vampire but it appears to be futile as Bella remains lifeless. Panicked, Edward begins chest compressions. Jacob scornfully tells him he won’t kill him as it would be a greater punishment for Edward to spend the rest of his life knowing he was the reason Bella died. Jacob then storms out of the house and collapses to his knees, sobbing. Seth and Leah tell the pack Bella didn’t survive the delivery. Distraught, Jacob goes back inside and attempts to kill Renesmee as he believes she was the reason Bella died, but when they look into each other's eyes, he sees all the future versions of her and decides not to kill her, imprinting on her instead.

When the werewolves learn of Bella's “death”, they attack the Cullens' house in an attempt to kill the baby, fearing that it would become too great of a threat. Edward, Alice, and Jasper, defend their home with the help of Leah and Seth, and are later assisted by Carlisle, Esme, and Emmett. Jacob then runs outside to stop the fight and transforms into his wolf form. Jacob and Sam shortly communicate with each other telepathically. Edward reads Jacob's mind, announcing that Jacob has imprinted on Renesmee, and since the wolves' most absolute law is not to harm anyone who has been imprinted on, they leave.

Edward’s venom begins to heal Bella, she is cleaned and dressed. Over the course of two days, her bite marks heal, her broken back and chest repair, and her figure returns to normal. Finally, the transformation is complete and when her eyes open, they are blood-red.

In a mid-credits scene, Aro and his brothers, Marcus and Caius, receive a letter from Carlisle announcing that the Cullens have a new member of the family. Aro informs his brothers that his feud with the Cullens is not yet over, as they have something he wants.

CAST

Kristen Stewart as Bella Cullen (nee ‘Swan’)

Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen

Taylor Lautner as Jacob Black,

Peter Facinelli as Carlisle Cullen,

Elizabeth Reaser as Esme Cullen,

Ashley Greene as Alice Cullen,

Kellan Lutz as Emmett Cullen,

Nikki Reed as Rosalie Hale,

Jackson Rathbone as Jasper Hale,

Billy Burke as Charlie Swan,

Sarah Clarke as Renée Dwyer,

Julia Jones as Leah Clearwater,

Booboo Stewart as Seth Clearwater,

MyAnna Buring as Tanya,

Maggie Grace as Irina,

Casey LaBow as Kate,

Michael Sheen as Aro,

Jamie Campbell Bower as Caius

Christopher Heyerdahl as Marcus,

Chaske Spencer as Sam Uley,

Mackenzie Foy as Renesmee Cullen,

Christian Camargo as Eleazar,

Mía Maestro as Carmen,

Olga Fonda as Valentina,

Stephenie Meyer makes a cameo as an attendee of Edward and Bella's wedding.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

commonly referred to as Breaking Dawn: Part 1

based on the 2008 novel Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

the fourth and penultimate installment in The Twilight Saga film series, and was followed by Breaking Dawn: Part 2 in 2012